The invention concerns a hose connecting device for connecting an elastic flexible hose to a rigid connection portion. The invention also concerns a hose having a hose connecting device, a system and a massage toy having a toy body which is in the form of a rigid connection portion and has an electric device for operation of the massage toy and an elastic toy casing which is in the form of a flexible hose and is connected to the toy body to form a massage shaft.
A problem which frequently arises is that of connecting elastic flexible hoses to a rigid connection portion in fluid-tight relationship. Usually in that case one end of the hose is pushed on to the connection portion in socket-like relationship and fixed for example with a hose clip in force-locking relationship by a clamping action. It is also known for the elastic flexible hose to be connected to the connection portion by means of an adhesive join. Such an adhesive join is wide-spread in particular in the case of the massage toys referred to in the opening part of this specification, in which an elastic flexible casing, for example a silicone body, is connected to a toy body which in general is made of a hard plastic material and forms the handle of the massage toy. The use of hose clips is not possible in such massage toys for optical, hygiene and health reasons.
It is also known in the field of massage toys for the flexible casing to be connected to the toy body by means of a clamping connection. That is disclosed for example in DE 20 2013 103 173 U1. The elastic casing in that massage toy is fitted into an annular groove on the handle and fixed there in force-locking relationship by means of an inner and an outer clamping ring. A disadvantage with this is that on the one hand a number of working steps are necessary to connect the toy casing to the toy body, while on the other hand there are small slots and openings at the connecting location, which are undesirable for hygiene reasons.
Various hose connecting devices for connecting two hoses or for connecting a hose to a connection portion in positively locking relationship are known from the general field of hose connections. Such hose connecting devices are disclosed for example in DE 1 926 538, DE 75 39 855 U1 or WO 01/63163 A1. In those three devices a respective hose portion is pushed on to a rigid connection portion in socket-like relationship. Arranged between the hose portion and the rigid connection portion is an annular intermediate body which has various positively locking means like for example hooks, latching noses or projections. The intermediate body co-operates at its inward side with the outside peripheral surface of the connection portion and at its outward side with the radially inner surface of the hose portion.
Admittedly such a device provides a simple and positively locking connection between a hose portion and a connection portion, which can also be fluid-tight depending on the respective configuration of the intermediate body. It will be noted however that all three devices require the hose portion to be of a certain strength as otherwise a permanent positively locking connection is not guaranteed.
Accordingly, in the case of the three hose connecting devices known from the state of the art, when an elastic flexible hose is pushed over the connection portion in socket-like relationship, an additional element like for example a hose clip is always necessary to make a permanent connection. For reasons already mentioned however that cannot be used in the massage toys set out in the opening part of this specification.
Therefore the object of the present invention is to provide a hose connecting device, by means of which an elastic flexible hose can be connected to a rigid connection portion in simple fashion durably and in particular in fluid-tight relationship.